Horses in Red Dead Redemption 2: Dressage and Companionship

UPDATE 2018/11/11: Now that the game is out, I took a closer look at which dressage maneuvers are possible and how the game’s renditions compare with real life horses. Read here.

Various gaming outlets have had opportunities to play a preview of Red Dead Redemption 2. From articles on IGN, Kotaku and Polgyon, I was able to gather a bunch of juicy new details about what the horses in the game promise to be:

Horses will get dirty over time, which will slow them down. You can brush and groom them.

Horses will poop dynamically.

You can pet horses.

Your horses can die. If one is dead, you cannot get it back.

You can command your horse to flee, for example to keep it out of a gunfight

Saddles and other equipment can be exchanged and customized

Forming a closer bond with your horse will unlock maneuvers. Various sources mention “dressage”, but don’t go into detail of which exercises will be possible.

You will not be able to call your horse from anywhere. Calling/whistling for it has a limited radius and will depend on your bond.

Fast travelling by train will mean you leave your horse behind

Horses are meant to be companions, more than mere means of transportation

You can lead your horse by the bridle

Horses will grow agitated when they sense dangers such as thunderstorms or snakes hiding in the grass

Your horse and its saddlebags double as your inventory: You can’t carry too many weapons on your person, so you’ll want to keep your horse nearby

All in all, I could not be more excited about these improvements to the Red Dead Redemption steeds. The first Red Dead Redemption had one of the best examples of Equine representation back in 2010 and it looks more and more like its sequel attempts to take that throne again.

I am paricularly stoked about the more realistic additions like having to groom and clean your horse, which I consider entirely novel for a AAA game.

Yeehaw.

Red Dead Redemption 2 will be released for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on October 26th 2018.